This election is probably the most important political intersection of our time.

I try to leave political opinion to brighter brains, but even at my basic level of operation, there are things that amaze me.

Why do people raise and spend more money than they will ever earn to serve in the state legislature?

Most terms of state legislators are part-time gigs at best, and the job doesn’t pay that much. Why would someone want it? To avoid speeding tickets?

In order to serve in the legislature, one must have a real job because you can’t make a living hanging at the “state house.”

Or, can you?

Legislators might get some “expense money,” but even with that I don’t think it makes financial sense.

Many legislators are lawyers, and that, to me, seems a conflict of interest.

That said, some legislators and big town city council members wind up driving mighty fine cars and wearing nice clothes.

I think I’ve figured out why someone on a limited income would stretch themselves thin to buy and drive a luxury car.

First, it was likely not bought new but at an auction or used car lot. Owning a luxury car is like trying to keep up a “second woman.” They’re expensive to maintain and usually not worth the trouble.

Second, more people see you in your car than in your house, so there is an opportunity to impress more people by driving a fine car than living in a fine house.

It is interesting that politicians put their pictures on campaign signs. Why?

Why do people need to see what you look like? Looks have nothing to do with one’s ability to serve as an elected official.

It is a way of sorting out the candidates for those who vote by race. The picture shows your race.

It is as bad to vote FOR someone because of their race as it is to vote AGAINST someone because of race.

Dr. Martin Luther King said that he hoped that people would be judged by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin.

That has been turned upside down.

African-Americans are the demographic group most hurt by the current economy and stand to suffer the most from the taxes imbedded in the health care bill known as “Obamacare.” They’ve given President Obama their support and haven’t gotten much in return, and won’t.

I don’t understand why someone would run for political office anyway.

In a small town or rural county, it becomes more than a body can carry.

The mayor of my hometown once told me that he didn't get much sleep the night before because someone called him, more than once, about a barking dog.

There wasn’t much he could do when the dog wouldn’t listen to reason.

The complainer had not appealed directly to the dog owner, and at mid-morning, the dog was asleep in the shade of a tree.

“I felt like joining him,” the mayor said.

And what is that saying about letting sleeping dogs lie?

Joe Phillips writes his “Dear me” columns for several small newspapers. He has many connections to Walker County, including his grandfather, former superintendent Waymond Morgan. He can be reached at joenphillips@hotmail.com.